Tea for Two
by jasmonsterrrx3
Summary: Uhh, first fan fic in a long time. Takes place in high school. Romance involved. OC/one of 'em. haha, I haven't decided yet.
1. First Impressions

Just because it's more fun to write older characters, I'm speedin this up a bit. (: Ages are as follows:  
Huey Freeman: 17  
Riley Freeman: 15  
Jazmine DuBois: 17  
Cindy McPhearson: 17  
Michael Caesar: 17  
And an original character, Jolie "Chai" Costa: 16

* * *

"Man, forget y'all niggas. I hope they got a fine ass bitch in they family," Riley Freeman exclaimed. Huey, Caesar, and Riley were standing in the driveway of the Freeman residence, watching what was happening across the street. Recently, their neighbor's house had gone up for sale and within the first week it was on the market, the Costa family's offer was accepted. The boys watched the moving van pull into the driveway.

"Damn, Riley, why you always have to call women 'bitches' and 'hoes'?" Caesar inquired.

"'Cause that's all they be. They either high maintenance bitches, or loose ass hoes."  
Huey Freeman shook his head in disdain. He really hated his brother's way of thinking. Across the street, the doors to the moving van opened. Out of the driver's side stepped a tall, mixed looking man. Out of the passenger's side, a little girl hopped down from the seat. She looked no older than ten years old.

"Damn. All I wanted was a little somethin to look at and they ain't got nothin. Shit, why I always gotta be let down?" Riley whined, slouching. He turned to go inside.

"Okay, you can go inside, but I think you might be missing out." Caesar teased.

"On what? An eight year old? Nigga, you wack," Riley muttered, turning around. But then he saw what Caesar was talking about. A black Honda Civic pulled up to the curb and parked, stereo system booming, silver rims shining. The car turned off and out stepped a teenage girl who looked to be somewhere around the boys' ages.

"Daaaaaaaamn," Riley exclaimed. She wasn't too tall, only around five foot seven. She definitely knew how to dress herself, wearing skinny jeans and a ruffled shirt with a vest. She wore some old converse though, and she looked predominantly white. Her hair was long, curled, and black with a purple streak. "Too bad she a white bitch," He said a little too loudly. The girl turned to look at them, but shook her head and walked away.

"I think she heard you," Huey spoke up. "I don't understand why you have to be so rude all the time. You don't even know that girl."

"Man, whateva man, I was just sayin, man. Always givin me shit for some shit that ain't even a big deal. Nigga, shut up 'for I get my crew up here and-"

"Man, Riley, shut up." The boys turned around and walked inside, the youngest of them muttering darkly under his breath.

* * *

The next day, Huey woke to his grandfather's loud voice downstairs. He rolled over and opened his eyes. Groaning, he sat up; stretching, he stood up; and rubbing his eyes he made his way downstairs. To his surprise, they had company. Grand dad was talking to a vaguely familiar man. Peering around the corner, he noticed two more guests, and waking up, reckognized them as the new neighbor's from across the street. The ten year old's eyes were wide, but the older girl from yesterday looked bored. She was listening to her iPod, with her arms crossed, sitting on a chair in the corner. Huey nodded to be polite, blank faced. She made a face in recognition, and the ten year old assaulted him with a barrage of questions.

"Hiiiiii, my name's Rocio!" She exclaimed. "What's your name? Have you lived here your whole life? What's your favorite color? How old are you? What grade are you in? Why do you have an afro?"

"Rocio, calm down," the elder said, pulling her little sister away. "Sorry, she's really curious. I'm Chai."

"No you're not, you're Jolie. Why don't you like your name? It means pretty!" Rocio inquired, innocently. This so called Chai laughed, annoyed.

"Damn, Grand dad, what the hell is all this noise for?" Riley yelled, coming down the stairs.

"Dammit boy, what I tell you about cursin in front of company? Don't think just cause there's people here I won't take this belt off and teach you a lesson. Just 'cause you're 15 don't mean you're grown, so you better start actin your age."

"Well, I ain't know we had people over. You ain't warn us or nothin, shit..." he trailed off. "Sup, nigga, I'm Riley, and that nigga ova there who won't introduce his gay ass is my brother Huey. OW." Riley rubbed his head where Huey just smacked him. Chai snickered. "Damn, bitch, what are you laughin at? Ain't nothin funny over here."

"DAMMIT BOY! I HEARD YOU, YOU BETTER WATCH YOUR-"

"Boy you better calm your ass down. You deserved that. I heard what you called me yesterday, and now you're callin me a bitch again today. You better calm down with all that, I don't take shit from anyone. Especially little wannabe thugs like yourself." Chai stuck up for herself, glowering at Riley. The younger boy was furious. Clenching his fists, he muttered darkly, glaring at the floor. Chai refocused her attention on her iPod, turning the volume up.

Grand dad and their new male neighbor continued their conversation in the kitchen, away from the children. "Get along now, kids. I don't wanna come in here and find y'all actin up."

Huey opened the morninig paper, Riley turned on the TV and started playing video games, Rocio wandered around the house, and Chai hummed in the corner, staring out the window at the beautiful summer day outside. It was almost the end of summer though, and school would be starting up again. She hoped her Senior year at this school would be tolerable, because one of her new neighbors definitely wasn't.


	2. An Introduction

_Tic, tock, tic, tock: _the clock on the off-white brick wall taunted Chai from afar_._ It was her senior year at an entirely new school. Her new teachers were boring, and strict. Her classmates were far from appealing, and her first day there had already been a nightmare. _Tic, tock, tic…_and there goes the bell.

"Okay, class, once again I'd like to welcome you to Advanced Placement Studio Art. I look forward to seeing your bright, shining faces tomorrow. We'll begin the first unit first thing," beamed her teacher, Ms. Benoit. She seemed to be the only nice teacher Chai had (though, it was an ART teacher, who could expect anything less than great?). She quickly gathered her belongings and made her way out the door, turning down the hall to find her locker. She opened it and stuffed her art supplies inside, removing her ratty looking Trigonometry book, and her calculator.

Chai had to be a very lucky girl. If her hand had been in her locker, she would have some broken fingers because not two seconds after she stuffed her book in her oversized tote bag, and found a safe place for her calculator, her locker came crashing closed.

Riley Freeman's body was thrown into her locker with such a force, it left a small dent where he hit his head.

"Punk ass bitch! Try to hustle me again, I dare you," A bigger, much stronger looking boy threatened.

Riley opened his mouth to speak, but before he could get himself in trouble, he found himself being pulled away by his new neighbor.

"Aye, bitch, what are you doin? I was 'bout to kick that nigga's ass! Then you gotta pull me away and shit… You don't know me!" He protested, trying to escape her grip.

"Boy, you wouldn't know what to do if that dude really started somethin. Did you see how much bigger he was? And don't gimme no excuses, neither. Last thing I need is for your sorry ass to get thrown into my locker again. You coulda broke my damn hand. Now, where's your brother? And WHAT THE HELL DID I TELL YOU ABOUT CALLIN ME A BITCH?" Chai found Huey with a group of people further down the hall. Upon her arrival with his little brother, he sighed. He hoped this girl wasn't expecting to make friends with him. His friends, however, welcomed her with smiles. "Uh, hey," Chai started sounding nervous. "Keep your brother out of trouble, alright? Trynna be a hustler…" she trailed off and pushed Riley toward the small crowd.

"'Bout damn time you let me go. Actin like you was the police or somethin..." The younger freeman crossed his arms and looked away from everyone.

"What'd he do this time? Riley, you fightin again?"

"No, I was-"

"You were getting your ass beat again, weren't you? Are you still Trynna hustle niggas? When you gonna learn you ain't a hustler, nor are you any kind of gangsta?" Huey smacked his younger brother on the 

back of his head. "You better get to learnin before you get yourself killed." Then, with a pointed look at Chai he added, "Don't worry about him. He's used to getting his ass beat anyway. But thanks, anyway."

"How do you know Huey and Riley?" inquired one of Huey's friends. She was a pretty mixed girl, around the same height as Chai, maybe a little taller. She had two gorgeous emeralds for eyes, and long, straight blondish hair.

"I live in the house across the street from them. I'm Chai."

"Chai like tea, Chai?" Asked a blonde headed white girl with pretty blue eyes.

"Yeah, just like the tea."

"Well nice to meet you, Chai," smiled the mixed girl. "My name's Jazmine. You're my new neighbor, too."

"And I'm Cindy," said the white girl. "And the one with his iPod up full blast is Caesar." She pointed to a tall boy who was standing behind Huey, sort of hiding behind Huey's afro. He offered a sort-of smile as a greeting and bobbed his head to whatever he was listening to.

"Well, it was nice meeting you guys," Chai said, turning.

"Hey wait! We were just about to go to the park, do you wanna come?" asked Jazmine, but Chai was already gone. "Oh…nevermind. What's up with her?"

"I don't know. She's probably just shy or somethin. I wouldn't take it personally or anything."

Later that evening, Jamine DuBois left the Freeman residence and crossed the street. She decided it would be nice to drop in on their new neighbor and rang the doorbell. Chai's father opened the door.

"Hello, is Chai home?" She asked, sheepishly.

"Who- oh, you must mean Jolie. Sure, young lady, right this way." He smiled, letting her in. "Do you know my daughter from school?"

"Sort of. I met her today at school, but I live down the street a little, and my best friend lives across the street. I met her through him." Mr. Costa lead Jazmine through the kitchen and knocked on the garage door.

"Just a second!" came his daughter's muffled reply.

"You have a visitor!"

"A what? Who?"

"It's me, Jazmine!"

"Oh, you can come in if you want." So Jazmine turned the doorknob and stepped inside. She was greeted by paint fumes and music. Chai stood near what appeared to be a freshly painted concrete slate, can of spray paint in hand. A magnificent Che was stenciled on the concrete. His mouth had a red x over it, and over his eyes was a censor bar, but it was still obviously Che Guevara. Words made up the background of the stencil. Those words made up a famous Che quote: "Silence is argument carried out by other means."

"Oh no, not another one..." Jazmine teased, smiling. Chai took off her mask.

"Another one? What does that mean?"

"Nothing, I was just kidding. Huey's pretty in to revolutionary movements and stuff like that. It's probably why he never looks happy."

"Oh. That's cool. I haven't really communicated with their family much. Anyway, what brings you by?"

"Nothin in particular, I just thought I'd stop in and say hello. I like making new friends."

"That's nice of you, thanks."

"Don't mention it," the mixed girl beamed. "Well, I'd better get going. My parents would be mad if I missed dinner. Here's my number if you need anything! Call or text, it's your choice." She handed Chai a small slip of paper. "I'll see you at school tomorrow. We have the same Anatomy class." Chai pressed a button on the wall to raise the garage door.

"Alright, I'll text you some time. Thanks again for stopping by." She waved goodbye to Jazmine, who was already making her way down the driveway. Yelling could be heard from across the street, along with the sound of crashing objects and screaming.

"Well," the young artist thought aloud. "It ain't my problem."

* * *

Sooooooooo, sorry it's kinda boring. I'll make some conflict I promise.  
But whatever, thanks for reading if you did.  
If you're reading this, your names probably Kelsey.  
HA, whateverrr, review! please. thanks.

Jasmyn


	3. The Dinner Party

Yay! Thanks for the reviews and the encouragement from: SapphireStones, Osaisi, and Trigger Mike the Great. It is greatly appreciated. Welllllllll, I'm trying. (: Enjoy.

"DAMMIT, BOY! GET BACK HERE!" The crack of his grandfather's belt sent Riley flying.

"I HATE YOU!" He screamed, running out of the house. His grandfather chased him and caught him, beating him on the spot. Riley's screams echoed down Timid Deer Lane, nosy white people everywhere peeped outside to see what was happening. They hid behind bushes, they hid behind their doors. Some of them had the audacity to walk right up close to the old man and his grandson and form a sort of semi-circle around the pair. Keeping a reasonable distance, of course. Huey Freeman watched out the window.

"White people…" he thought aloud, returning to his work. AP Physics homework wasn't going to do itself, after all. The oldest Freeman was probably the smartest young man at his school. Unfortunately for him, he was not number one in his class. He was in the top five, but there were two people ahead of him. He didn't know who they were, but he did know they were white. He blamed it on the white man's inability to appreciate his style of writing. Or debate. Or anything else, for that matter. He believed Woodcrest High School was holding him down because he would be the first African American valedictorian ever at his school. Which is why he decided it was time to actually try. He signed up for the hardest classes his school could offer. No electives were included in his schedule, which was good for him because he couldn't stand mainstream classes. He never failed to go off on one of his fellow black men who wouldn't do his work. He always told them that they were the reason white people generated such a negative stereotype for black people.

Much was the same for his new neighbor, Chai. Jolie Costa was half Mexican and half Italian (her father was mixed black and Italian, and her mother was Mexican with some Italian in her ancestry). She moved to Woodcrest from Los Angeles, California, where she attended a school similar to Woodcrest High. While she was more street smart than book smart, she was still in the top quarter of her class. Her classes were not nearly as hard as Huey's, taking Art over more rigorous math courses any day, but she excelled in all of her classes. And while she was in Los Angeles, Chai often found herself telling her fellow Mexican-Americans the same things Huey would tell his fellow African Americans. And that is how the two would get into an argument at dinner.

* * *

Robert Jebediah Freeman loved to host dinner parties and invited the DuBois and the Costas to dinner that night. On the table was a nice display of food. Granddad made greens, chicken, and mashed potatoes. Rocio "made" tiramisu with her sister (which means Chai did all the real cooking), and their father brought a bottle of Malvasia di Schierano to go with the dessert. Mrs. DuBois attempted at another peach cobbler.

"Boys! Get down here right now, its dinner time!" Granddad called, humming the "Dinnertime song". The Freeman brothers took their places at the dining table.

"Eww what is that? Ms. DuBois, you try to make cobbler again? Man, it STILL look like throw up."

"Riley! Shut yo' mouth!" Granddad ordered, but his grandson didn't hear. He continued to tease Sarah for her poor cobbler-making skills.

"Well then you don't have to eat any," Mrs. DuBois interrupted him. "It looks like our new neighbors brought a dessert too." She pointed at the tiramisu.

"It was my nonna's favorite," Rocio beamed, proudly. "I made it with sorella."

"Wit who?"

"Sorella is Italian for sister," Rocio explained to Riley. "And we call boys like you bello, si sorella?" Chai's eyes widened and she nearly spit out her drink.

"Lei è troppo giovane per preoccuparsi di ragazzi," she scolded. "But I guess so, if you're into that kind of thing." Chai's father laughed nervously, looking around the confused table.

"No more Italian at the table," he advised.

"What she say about me?!"

"Nothing bad, don't worry about it," The older sister told him.

"Naw, bitc-, I mean, girl, watchu say about me?"

"I didn't say anything about you," she replied calmly. "Good save, by the way."

"So, Mr. Costa," Jazmine started.

"Please, call me Lawrence," he smiled.

"Uh…okay, Mr. Lawrence," she started again. "You don't look very Italian, how do they know it?"

"Well, I'm half Italian, and my girls are Italian, Black, and Mexican."

"They ain't look black."

"Shut up, Riley. Not all people of African descent are dark skinned or even light skinned. In South Africa, a large number of the people there are white. The black people there went through the same stuff we went through here when we were fighting for civil rights, only they called in Apartheid. Nelson Mandela went to prison fighting for his rights over there. It's ignorant niggas like you that keep our people down. You can't judge a person's heritage from just their looks." While, most people stop listening to Huey at any sign of lecture, Chai listened attentively, her big brown eyes fixated upon him.

"Well," she started. "Why do you do that then?" The rest of the table returned its attention to Chai and Huey, who were seated across from each other.

"What are you talking about?"

"You think all white people automatically think of all black people in a certain stereotype," she continued. "Not all of them do. The few white friends I had were always very accepting and open minded and never thought of black people in any kind of stereotype whatsoever. So by assuming all white people are 'keeping you down' just because you're black, you're being hypocritical for judging the same way they judge you, and the way you just told your brother not to judge: by appearance." She left the table stunned.

"Uh oh…" Jazmine thought aloud, wide eyed.

"Did…you just call me a hypocrite?" Huey inquired, slightly angry.

"Yes, in that aspect, I do believe you are a hypocrite," Chai answered.

"Aww, shit. Here it goes. Girl, you best escape while you can. This nigga goes on for hours," Riley advised. "Yo dumbass had to go and call him a hypocrite, girl you trippin!"

Granddad ushered everyone out of the dining room. "Riley, take care of the dishes!"

"I'll help!" Jazmine offered. Together, they cleared the table and made their way to the kitchen.

It was on now.


	4. Setting Differences Aside

The pair had been at it for hours.

Walking around the dining table, Huey's hands in his pockets, Chai's behind her head, they watched each other's every move. All communication is eighty percent body language. Both of the teens knew this and thus, were searching for any sign of weakness or surrender. Eyes locked, even when people came in to see if they were finished debating or were simply just passing through, the stare was uninterrupted.

"We're going home now, Chai, good night," her father had told her an hour ago.

"Buonanotte, papa," she waved him off, never once taking her eyes off Huey. "Buonanotte, saronella."

"Nighty night, sissy," her sister yawned.

The same went for Granddad and Huey, even Riley. It got so late, and the two got so tired of standing, they went and sat on the couch and continued there.

"Well it's not my fault white people see my people negatively. To be honest, I don't even understand why. We're just looking for better lives, and when we get here we work for less than minimum wage for greedy, white rich men who are too stingy to treat us fairly. We don't get benefits, or healthcare, or anything. At least you and your people don't get cheated out of minimum wage or insurance coverage by white men who don't car to check whether you're here illegally or not. They just automatically assume that since you're Hispanic, you need a green card and when you don't have one and try to explain you were born and raised in Los Angeles the white people don't believe you. They see skin color, not knowledge, or family history, or anything else, all because my stupid brethren won't change their ways. "

"So you're a hypocrite too, then," Huey pointed out.

"How am I a hypocrite? Why are you still on that, we've established your hypocrisy and we've talked about so many other things."

"Not just anybody calls me a hypocrite without expecting some type of attack back, be it verbal or physical."

"See, I've never understood that about men. Why do MEN always have to fight back over every little thing, even if it isn't serious? They already have the upper hand in the world. It's always been a man's world. And as for violence, it isn't really all that necessary in most cases. "

"You're starting to sound like Jazmine right now."

"Is that a bad thing?"

"Well she is naïve."

"So are you calling me naïve? Freeman, no one calls me naïve and gets away with it. I am far from naïve. Boy, I've been jaded since the 5th grade."

"I been jaded my whole life, and I am not a hypocrite."

"But Huey, you contradicted yourself in your own lecture. In your everyday way of life you contradict yours-"

"And you do too, the exact same way."

"Fine, I'll admit I sometimes say that white people keep my people down for the sole fact that they're white. But I don't blame my place on them. I blame it on the ignorance of my people who never change even though they know they're giving us a bad name."

"And the same goes for me."

"Not entirely. Earlier you were talking about your class rank and how you blamed the principal for keeping you 3rd in class. Just because you're black."

"When did I say that?"

"About three and a half hours ago," she yawned. Her eyelids were heavy, and she sank into the couch. "This couch is comfortable…" Huey rubbed his eyes and looked at his watch. 4:45.

"Don't change the subject, Chai. Just because we've established your hypocrisy, too."

"So what, we're both hypocrites, then. Big deal. But I'm not naïve."

"No, Jolie. You are definitely an ingénue."

"Don't call me by that name," and with that slurred sentence, the argument was finally over, and Chai fell asleep.

Huey was exhausted too. It didn't help he had to be up and ready for school in three hours, either. Head in his hand, Huey nodded off, uncharacteristically too tired to care that they had only agreed to disagree. He felt Chai move, but didn't care to look. She was curled up on the couch next to him, already fast asleep.

* * *

_Huey Freeman stood on the hilltop underneath his favorite tree, katana in hand. Clouds were rolling in, and it began to rain. His eyebrows rose slightly. Someone was behind him. Unsheathing his katana, he turned quickly to come face to face with- no one. He looked left, then right. Then turned again to check behind him, but he found no one._

_"Look up," said a voice, and down dropped a figure in all black attire. Picking itself up slowly, it unsheathed its own katana and assumed a duel stance._

_Huey took his own stance, and waited for the figure to strike. They stood there, watching each other's every move, when suddenly, Huey found cold steel against his throat. He couldn't understand it! He hadn't took his eyes off this mysterious person. What happened?_

* * *

"DAMN NIGGA WAKE UP!" Riley Freeman shook his brother harder than he had before, pulling the afro-headed boy out of his dream.

"What?" He asked, drowsily.

"Come look at granddad!" He pulled his older brother up the stairs and to his grandfather's room, where his grandfather sat, mumbling. The muscles in his face were strangely relaxed, and he couldn't quite keep his eyelids open.

"WHITE BROAD! WHITE BROAD COME 'ERE!"

Chai stumbled up the stairs, groggily. "I know you ain't already disrespect-holy shit! Mr. Freeman! Huey, call 911!"

"See, Granddad! This is from all that junk food you eat. If you would've just listened to me…" Huey trailed off, dialing 911.

"911 dispatch, what is your emergency?"

"Mr. Freeman, I need you to turn your head left," Chai ordered rather loudly, taking charge.

"Why the h-hellllll am I doing thisss?" he managed, and obeyed.

"Good! Now turn your head right." Chai and the boys watched, worried. The boys didn't know what to look for, but Jolie Costa had watched her grandmother die showing similar symptoms to what her neighbor was going through. She watched Robert Freeman struggle, and after a few seconds of him not being able to turn his head right, she knew what was wrong.

"Tell them to hurry! He's having a stroke!" Once again, Huey obeyed.

Fifteen minutes later, the ambulance showed up. The paramedics got Mr. Freeman in the ambulance as quickly as possible, and sped off to the hospital, Huey on board.

"What am I gonna do?" Riley panicked. "I ain't trynna go to school now!" The younger brother looked slightly afraid. Any normal teenager would if they witnessed their guardian having a stroke, or any other type of health problem. It was on this day that Jolie "Chai" Costa became a big part of Woodcrest.

"I'll drive you to the hospital, come on." So the two pursued the ambulance, and Chai tried to calm Riley down.

"Is the nigga gonna die?!"

"How old is he?"

"Iono….a hundred?"

"You don't even know your own grandfather's age?!"

"NO! HOW'M I SUPPOSED TA KNOW? HE AN OLD NIGGA!"

"Calm down, damn it! I don't need you to be yellin at me in MY car while I'm driving YOU to see YOUR grandfather at the gat damn HOSPITAL. Put some music on," she told him. "My iPod's in the glove compartment." Riley obeyed, making faces at first.

"What is THIS shit? Why you got this nigga up here? He can't rap or sing or-. OHH! WEEZY!" The bass boomed.

"I'm a nigga with money, I'm a nigga wit money, I'm a nigga wit money, and Ion't love dat bitch. I tell 'er bitch, bitch, bitch, bitch make me rich. I'm a nigga wit money and Ion't love dat bitch." Riley rapped, out of time. (A/N: That was for you, Kels. :P)

"Shit, boy why you talkin? You can't even keep time," Chai laughed, pulling into the pack parking lot. Chai found a space and whipped around some other cars to get it. "Call your brother."

"I ain't takin no orders from no broad," he resisted. "Young Reezy ain't no one's bitch." He pulled out his phone anyway and made the call. Chai smirked, following Riley into the hospital.


	5. A Hospital Visit

"I'm sorry…we did everything we could." The air inside the hospital was cold and dry. The mood was solemn. Riley Freeman just added tension.

"I'm glad that nigga won't Granddad," he told Huey much louder than intended. The newly grieving family surrounding him glared in his direction. Riley's older brother rolled his eyes and smacked his younger brother upside the head.

"Riley, be considerate of the people around you. You never know, that may be the news they bring us. And since when do you care about Granddad?"

"Man, shut up nigga. I just don't want another nigga in our family to…you know…" Riley stopped short of completing his thought, rubbing his head and glaring at Huey. "I wish that white broad were still here…" Huey spared his brother the embarrassment and left the comment alone. He returned to the bold black text on thin, grayish white page.

"Are you the Freemans?" A doctor asked, approaching the boys.

"We da only black people in here, watchu think?" The doctor examined Riley and cleared his throat nervously.

"Well," Huey started. "How is he?"

The tall white man had a grave expression on his face. "I'm sorry, young men…"

"GRANDDAD'S DEAD?! NO! WHO'M I S'PPOSED TA JOKE NOW?! WHO'M I S'PPOSED TA ANNOY THE HELL OUT OF ALL DAY ERR'DAY?!" The young Freeman screamed, creating the biggest scene the hospital had seen since Gangstalicious was admitted there years ago. He threw magazines every which way, and dropped to his knees, arms stretched toward the ceiling. "WHYY?!"

"…your grandfather is perfectly fine," the doctor finished, smiling.

"Oh, how you gonna do a nigga like that!? Bitch, I should whoop yo' ass for that shit! Makin me look stupid or somethin..." Riley crossed his arms and looked away defiantly. His older brother shook his head.

"Excuse my brother's ignorance," He apologized. Then, turning to his brother ordered, "Nigga, clean this mess up! Actin like a fool, what were you thinkin? You must've lost your mind!" He punctuated each word in the second and third sentence with a smack to the back of the younger boy's head.

"Young Reezy don't take orders from no one!" He protested. "I ain't yo' bitch!"

"Nigga, do you WANT to die?"

"What da hell YOU gonna do?! Not a damn thing, that's…"

The older boy's fist made contact with his younger brother's stomach, knocking all the air out of him. Glaring, Riley regained his composure and put his fists up, bouncing left to right. He sent his right fist whizzing through the air, but his older brother was too quick, and far exceeded his fighting skills. Huey ducked and swung his leg around low, sweeping his brother off of his feet.

Riley hit the white linoleum tile with a thud. Picking up the object nearest to him, he threw a heavy flower vase at Huey's head so hard it gave the elder no time to react. Huey grunted, charging at his brother with no regard to the people watching. He tackled his opponent, pinning him to the ground. He would've continued, had security not pulled him off of his victim.

"White people…" he muttered.

* * *

Three hours later, after being brought back to the hospital from holding cells at the jail by Tom, the Freeman brothers made their way to their grandfather's hospital room.

"Tom! What the hell you doin bringin these boys here for? You trynna raise my blood pressure some more?"

"No, Robert! I just thought you might like to know how worried they were about you!"

"If they were so worried, then why the hell didn't they come here themselves? They don't care about their poor, old granddad. I provide, and provide, and provide, and what do I get in return? Desertion. You boys just wait 'till I get outta this damn hospital! I'll show you ungrateful niggas a thing or two about respect." He ranted. Huey rolled his eyes and sat near the window, staring outside it. Riley crossed his arms and harrumphed, sitting down on a comfy looking red chair in the corner. Tom smiled nervously.

"Well, I guess this wouldn't be a good time to tell you that along with your bills for your treatment, you owe the hospital 500, then."

"I WHAT? How the hell do I owe that kind of fine when all I been doin is lyin around in this damn bed all day!?"

"Well..."

"Huey's punk-ass tried to order me around and then attacked me," Riley whined.

"BOY! Is that true?"

"Yes, but I only told him to clean up the mess he made while he was making a scene about you being in the hospital." Replied the afro-headed boy.

"HUEY! What'd I tell you about beatin your brother's- You were worried about me?" Granddad's mood changed from being livid, to disbelief in a second flat.

"Knock, knock," a nurse said cheerily, walking in with Granddad's lunch.

"Well, hello there, cutie pie!" He beamed.

"Hello, Mr. Freeman. Lunch time!" She said, setting the tray of food down on the table. Mr. Freeman made a face at the selection. Soggy looking green stuff, a red apple, carrots, and a small roast beef sandwich.

"Uh, Cutie pie," he started, smiling. "Wouldn't you rather bring me a nice bacon cheeseburger, instead?"

"No can do, Mr. Freeman," she shook her head. "We have to get your blood pressure down again." She left the room before he could protest, or bribe her.

"Held up here in the damn hospital and you can't even get some descent damn food…" he grumbled. "This is some BULL shit. "Shouldn't you boys be in school? Tom! Get them back to school!"

"Robert, school's been out-"

"I DON'T CARE! I AIN'T PAYIN FOR THEIR EDUCATIONS FOR NOTHIN!"

"Granddad, you don't pay for our educations," Huey pointed out. "We go to public school."

"BOY! Don't talk back to me! I'm in the hospital. And don't think you boys'll be stayin home alone. Hell no, not after what happened last time. Can they stay with you, Tom?"

"No can do, Robert. Sarah and I are going out of town," he replied.

"Damn...well...what about those new neighbors? The Pastas? Rastas?"

"I'll try my best, but I can't make any guarantees..."


End file.
